honestly

adverb

hon·​est·​ly ˈä-nəst-lē 

1

: in an honest manner: such as

a

: without cheating

counted the ballots honestly

b

: really, genuinely

was honestly scared

c

: without frills

food honestly prepared

2

: to be honest : to tell the truth

honestly, I don't know

Synonyms of honestly

• frankly
• actually
• really
• indeed

Examples of honestly in a Sentence

Officials counted the votes honestly.

The bank has always dealt honestly with me.

I can honestly say that I have never seen that man before today.

He spoke honestly about the mistakes he had made.

She honestly believes that she has been mistreated.

Recent Examples on the Web

Farmer joined the Braves in spring training as an infielder, quite honestly in the twilight of a professional baseball journey that began as an eighth-round pick by the Dodgers in 2013. —Chad Bishop, AJC.com, 3 May 2026

Sy Snootles The intergalactic version of Stevie Nicks (but kind of better, honestly), Sy belted all the hits as lead singer and dancer of the Max Rebo Band. —Brian Truitt, USA Today, 3 May 2026

Aging can be hard and, honestly, getting old can feel ugly. —Tereza Shkurtaj, PEOPLE, 2 May 2026

Listen, no one is better than good in Valentine’s Day, and only a few people achieve that low bar — Hathaway, Queen Latifah (duh), and honestly, Taylor Swift. —Chris Feil, Vulture, 1 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for honestly

• dishonestly

Kids Definition

honestly

adverb

hon·​est·​ly ˈän-əst-lē 

1

: in an honest manner: as

a

: without cheating

counted the votes honestly

b

: actually, genuinely

was honestly scared

2

: to be honest : to tell the truth

honestly, I don't understand it